InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Tales from the House of the Moon ❯ Chapter Fourteen ( Chapter 14 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Tales from the House of the Moon
by
Resmiranda

Chapter Fourteen

"A sudden blow: the great wings beating still
Above the staggering girl, her thighs caressed
By the dark webs, her nape caught in his bill,
He holds her helpless breast upon his breast."
-- William Butler Yeats, "Leda and the Swan"

"That day
I was stuck at home, as usual, while
she got to moon around the lake
supposedly picking lilies for dye."
-- Katharyn Howd Machan, "Leda's Sister and the Geese"

* * *

If there is anything better than a full belly, a warm fire, and free blood, I don't know what it is, thought Myouga, dozing in front of the flames. The old flea was feeling surprisingly contented.

It had been a good two weeks, even if the arguing was beginning to get on his nerves. His life hadn't been threatened, no one had squished him lately, and now that he was traveling with Kagome-sama he seemed to eat better and sleep more soundly. Now if only his two companions would shut up for more than an hour, life would be good.

A slight frown passed over his face. Since their first verbal battle, the arguments had escalated in frequency and volume, and while they were entertaining to watch as both struggled for the upper hand, Myouga couldn't help but feel that they broke the peace a little too often. Kagome-sama and his master seemed to enjoy pushing each other's sore spots at decibels loud enough to wake the dead, though at least now they had taken to wandering a little further away from the villages when the temptation to indulge in verbal sparring was too great.

All things considered, the bickering was a curious phenomenon, wrapped in the mystery of the situation. Myouga was still uncertain as to why Sesshoumaru had decided to follow Kagome, but he suspected that it had something to do with the demon lord's profound boredom and Kagome's puzzling nature. It wasn't that she was particularly interesting or fascinating, but that she sometimes did things that were incredibly bizarre and out of synch with the rest of the universe. He had witnessed it himself, those long years ago: her friends would listen to her or follow her lead not because she was clever or engaging, but out of sheer curiosity as to what she would do or say. She would babble about tests, or schoolwork, or things that just didn't make sense to any of them until she explained how things in her time worked, and even then her friends were usually left more confused than when she started and would merely nod. She was quietly unpredictable, always getting attacked or kidnapped, always jumping into the heart of a situation. Events always happened when she was there; the world was more exciting when she was around.

As near as Myouga could tell, people liked to be around Kagome just to see what in which mess she would end up in up to her neck next. Sesshoumaru, however, happened to other people; nothing ever seemed to occur unless he instigated it, so the idea of events falling into place rather than being painstakingly aligned was probably a novel concept to him. Myouga suspected that his lord followed Kagome just so he could be a spectator for once.

Of course, there was also the fighting. But as to that, Myouga mused, Sesshoumaru would most likely agree that there were worse ways to spend one's time than winding up a lovely young lady, causing her to flush prettily, and then engaging in a spirited discussion with her.

Myouga tilted his head and listened for the sound of a heated exchange, but it appeared that they had calmed down for the time being. Perhaps they had given up and were lobbing snowballs at each other. All the better, he decided. Maybe he could get some rest for once without one of them forcibly trying to insert the last word while the other was asleep.

Letting his eyes slide closed, Myouga left off his thoughts and concentrated on the crackling fire and its cheerful warmth that shielded him from the bitter cold outside. He could smell the clean non-scent of snow on the slight breeze that came through the hut, and it was wonderful. The world always seemed more at peace when there was snow on the ground. Myouga let his mind wander and drift between sleep and waking.

Only a scant few seconds later, a frustrated-looking Kagome tossed aside the flap hanging over the door and stomped her snow-covered feet all over the floor, jolting him awake. She was closely followed by Sesshoumaru, who wore a faintly amused expression and who paused inside the door to shake himself slightly, shedding flakes of snow.

"Ah! Sesshoumaru-sama! Kagome-sama! It is good to see you—" he began, but before he could continue Sesshoumaru stepped to the back of the hut and the flap moved aside again. This time, the girl who entered was a stranger. Heavily pregnant, she tottered inside, and a slender servant dogged her heels. To Myouga, the poor maid looked as though she couldn't lift a bowl of rice, much less aide a pregnant woman, but he admired the fact that she stayed close to her mistress, hands fluttering as if she expected her charge to topple over at any moment and wasn't about to be caught unprepared, even if they both went tumbling to the floor.

Kagome lowered herself to the ground and folded her hands in her lap while Sesshoumaru slid his own hands into his sleeves and stood off to the side. There was an embarrassed silence as the pregnant girl struggled to lower herself as well, and Myouga heard a distinct sigh of relief from the miko as the woman finally settled into position.

Embarrassment flamed in Kagome's cheeks – she hadn't thought about the difficulty of sitting down on the floor, and she wished she had a chair to offer Machiko. Alas, such things were not meant to be. All in all, it was probably best to try to get things over with.

Shifting a little Kagome, smiled at the girl – she couldn't have been more than sixteen – and then bowed. "How may I be of service, Machiko-sama?" she asked politely.

She was answered with silence. Questioningly, she straightened after a moment and gave the hime a puzzled look.

Then Machiko burst into tears. Her maid immediately leapt to her feet and began to fuss.

Kagome was horrified. After a second of sitting still, she scrambled for her backpack and withdrew a handkerchief, which she held out to the sobbing girl. "Forgive me!" she said desperately, ineffectually nudging at the girls hands with the square of cloth. "I did not mean to upset you!"

The maid, still fluttering like an extremely fretful butterfly, batted Kagome's hand away. "She's been like this for the last five months!" she cried, limbs akimbo in her consternation. "I swear I am at my wit's end!"

Machiko began to cry harder.

"It's okay! It's all right!" Kagome tried to reassure the girl, patting her on the hand. Oblivious, the hime began to wail, a high-pitched keening sound with an effect akin to fingernails on a chalkboard. Turning, Kagome cast a desperate glance at Sesshoumaru, who was leaning against the wall and staring off into space, paying no attention. Useless man, she grumped mentally, and turned back to the sobbing hime.

Sesshoumaru studied the cracks in the wall of the hut and tried not to think about either the high-pitched wails, or the ripe scent of the girl. Normally the smell of a pregnant female was a soothing one to a male, but in his mind there was the tickling, disquieting knowledge that the girl was swollen with a hanyou child. A half-demon, with tainted blood and a hard life ahead. Unbidden, he wondered if the father of the child was like his own father, shrouded in shadows and secrets, with a whole new life hidden away, built in silence as his other life crumbled. He wondered if this youkai had been forever unknown and unknowable as well. He wondered if some family wasted their love on him, too, oblivious to the thousand tiny lies that obscured the truth of him.

In his chest, there was a familiar sting, like the fangs of a viper sinking into his heart. No matter how many decades passed between remembrances, it always felt the same. It was as if on that day when he discovered all those secrets someone had painstakingly chiseled a command into his brain, telling him that it would always feel like this; that no matter how different the world would be when the memory trailed its fingers over his soul, this one thing would never change.

Sesshoumaru stifled a growl and forced his mind into a blank.

Kagome, oblivious, frowned unhappily at the still-sobbing girl. There seemed nothing for it but to wait for her to calm down – any attempt at soothing might set her off again. Snagging the sleeve of the maid, Kagome made a furtive gesture, indicating that she take a seat, and the maid, clearly used to this, sighed in resignation and plopped down as Kagome sat back and slowly counted to a hundred.

Still sitting on the floor, Myouga was finding the entire debacle extremely entertaining, and not half heartening either. This must be the hime she was looking for, he surmised. It will be an incredible stroke of luck that we have found her. If she stops crying, that is.

Kagome continued counting slowly. At eighty-seven, Machiko's sobs had slowed to only a few every ten seconds. Kagome took this as a good sign and inhaled deeply.

"Hime-sama?"

Wide, bloodshot eyes met hers, and the hime sniffled mightily. "My apologies, miko-sama," she said, although the stuffed nose made it sound like, "By abologies, biko-saba." Kagome narrowly avoided laughing outright and forced her expression into one of concern.

"It's no problem," she assured her. "Please, tell me what's troubling you."

Machiko sniffled again. "Well," she said. "I don't quite know how to say this, but now that I have met you, I think you will understand." Kagome noted that her eyes flickered in Sesshoumaru's direction as she took a deep breath.

"I am pregnant with a youkai's child."

Remembering to look slightly shocked, Kagome nodded sympathetically, indicating that she continue.

Machiko shook her head. "I can't believe it, even now," she said, placing a hand on her cheek and Kagome noted with alarm that her eyes were again filling with tears. "It's just so sudden!"

Next to her, the maid surreptitiously rolled her eyes. Kagome pressed her lips together. "And?" she said, impatient for the girl to get the story out so that they could arrive at the point with rather more expedience.

To Kagome's intense chagrin, the young hime pressed a hand against her forehead. Her long, midnight blue sleeves fell back from her wrist, further exposing the kimonos beneath. "It was so romantic, the way we met!"

I'll bet, Kagome thought uncharitably.

"I was separated from my friends, and got lost in the woods, and the next thing I knew, I heard a loud noise and I ran!" She heaved another indelicate sob. "And then I hurt my foot, and I cried, and then…" A few tapered fingers reached up to dramatically dash a tear away. "…and then, he came through the trees."

The hime paused, remembering dramatically. Kagome had to force herself to not let her mind wander.

"It was love at first sight!" the girl gushed. "He walked over to me and asked me if I was all right, and I could not answer. I was struck dumb, and even though I was sore afraid, he made me feel safe." She sighed. "He was so handsome, and strong, and handsome, and smart, and handsome—"

Kagome felt in danger of losing control of the conversation. "How did you know he was a youkai?" she asked quickly, interrupting her.

Machiko didn't seem to mind. "He had the cutest pointed ears!" she exclaimed. "Oh! And a tail. I think he was a mountain dog youkai in disguise."

Frowning, Kagome tilted her head to the side. "You mean you don't know?" she asked incredulously.

On the face of the hime a furious blush rose, and she cast her eyes downward. "Well," she said shyly, "we didn't really have time for talking."

Behind her, Kagome heard Sesshoumaru cough, just a little bit. So you are listening. Kagome kept her face carefully neutral and began to mentally list the parts of his body that she was going to purify first.

"I see," she said after a moment. "And what is it you wish of me?"

The hime's lower lip began to quiver perilously again, and her maid put a soft warning hand on her thigh and spoke in her stead. "Miko-sama," the maid said gravely, "perhaps we could talk about this just between women?" With a significant raise of her eyebrows, she glanced at the stoic youkai propped against the back wall.

Kagome bit her lip, unsure as to how to go about explaining the delicate situation, but for once Sesshoumaru seemed to comprehend the sensitive subject. She felt him brush by her, and watched as he swept out the door and let the flap fall into place behind him. It was likely that he would listen in anyway, but Kagome decided that neither of her guests really needed to know that.

Once the maid deemed Sesshoumaru to be out of earshot, she leaned in closer. "As you may have noticed, miko-sama, Machiko-sama is heavily with child."

Glancing at the distended belly of the hime, Kagome assessed that Machiko was, indeed, extremely pregnant, and would probably be giving birth any day now. Frowning, she nodded, not comprehending why the maid looked so grim, and Machiko so devastated. "I have noticed," she conceded. She watched as the maid's lips thinned into a line.

"Then you should also know that this incident occurred only five months ago," she said. "And yet the hime looks as though she is at the end of her term. The youkai's child is growing faster and larger than a human child." Rocking back on her heels, she leveled a stern gaze at Kagome.

"We fear that the consequences of bringing this youkai child to its full term may be dire."

Machiko let out another choked sob.

"We do not know what to do. Please, give us guidance, miko-sama."

Kagome felt like someone had thrown her into a cold lake, and she was treading water, out of her depth. Biting her lip, she looked down at her hands and fiddled with her sleeves.

She had assumed that the hime was ready to give birth to the child, but it seemed that the baby was too large and too robust for the small girl to handle. In her own time, the child would have been delivered by caesarian section and placed in intensive care, but here there were no such things, and Kagome knew better than to try any sort of major medical operation without training. She could patch up wounds, but not create them, and even if she could she certainly would not do it without assistance, sterile instruments, and anesthesia.

It seemed that one or both of them would die.

And yet…

There were many hanyous, and many women who gave birth to them without dying. Kagome wondered if mountain dogs were special in some way, or if this was a common phenomenon, and if it was, how was it usually dealt with?

She raised her head again. "Could you excuse me?" she said brightly. "I have to go ask my companion something!" Giving them no time to answer, Kagome clambered to her feet and trotted out the door.

As it turned out, Sesshoumaru hadn't even been trying to be discreet in his eavesdropping; she found him crouched outside the window with his back to the door. His head was tilted with one pointy ear pricked in the direction of the conversation. She imagined that if he'd had a cigarette, he would be a perfect shoe-in for a bizarre, cosplaying assassin on a stakeout.

Not entirely comfortable with giving him a kick, she settled for clearing her throat softly, which caused the demon lord to pivot very slowly in the snow. If she hadn't known better, she would have thought he looked sheepish. Rolling her eyes, she jerked her head toward the trees behind the village before slushing through the snow in that direction, and Sesshoumaru rose and followed her.

"This is familiar," he commented dryly as they came to a halt in the spot where, not half an hour previous, they had been lobbing heated arguments back and forth. Kagome was not in the mood.

"Tell me what you know about birthing hanyous," she demanded.

Whatever he had been expecting, it was not this. "What?" he asked, confused.

Kagome looked to be in a bad mood, and frowned at him. "I said, what do you know about birthing hanyous?"

Sesshoumaru's mind went curiously numb. "Nothing," he supplied.

Stomping her foot, the miko gave him a glare. "You don't know anything about them? Are they bigger than normal human babies, or is this one an anomaly?"

Sudden relief flooded him. "Yes," Sesshoumaru answered quickly. "They are generally larger. It is common knowledge."

With great effort, Kagome let that slide. "How is it handled then?" she asked.

Shrugging, the youkai inspected his seemingly perfectly manicured hands. "Usually there is some sort of medicine that the mother takes in order to induce birth at the sixth moon cycle that also helps her survive."

"Do you know where to get that medicine?" Kagome asked.

Sesshoumaru shook his head. "No, it's usually specific to the youkai tribe involved," he told her. "Which might be difficult, as the young lady in question appears to be a tad frivolous."

Sighing heavily, Kagome concurred. "Yeah. My mother always told me to get a name and phone number. You'd think this girl would have at least figured out his species."

The youkai lord didn't answer, merely raised his eyebrows.

Kagome ignored him and nudged some snow around with her foot, thinking.

Eventually she reached a conclusion. "I suppose… I'll have to go find this tribe," she said, resignation in her voice.

"This is an option," Sesshoumaru replied.

Kagome shot him a look. "Do you have a better idea?"

"No."

"All right then," she said. "Then we'll do it. What do you know about mountain dog youkai?"

Shrugging elegantly, Sesshoumaru pursed his lips ever so slightly. "They live a little further north from here, perhaps a few days walking time," he supplied. "There are several tribes, so it might take more time than you are willing to invest, but it should not be a problem finding the right one if given a better description of the youkai in question."

"Right!" Kagome said firmly. "She must have had a good look at him, right?"

In response, Sesshoumaru arched one eyebrow even higher. Suddenly extremely uncomfortable, Kagome whirled in place and stomped off through the snow and back to the hut, glowing as red as a traffic light and trailing a highly amused youkai in her wake.

Throwing the flap aside and stomping into the room, Kagome noticed the hime and the maid jump apart from an apparently short and heated discussion. "I need a description of the father," Kagome announced. "I have been informed that a medicine is available that will assist in the birth, but that it is specific to the tribe in question, so I need to find him." With a flourish, she sat down in her place, reached into her backpack, and pulled out a notepad and a pencil so she could take down the pertinent information. Sesshoumaru chose that moment to come through the door and resume his brooding pose against the wall.

To Kagome's intense irritation, the hime looked at him with tears in her eyes. "Thank you, my lord!" she exclaimed, bowing in his direction. Kagome frowned, but tried to shove her annoyance aside.

Sesshoumaru, being himself, said nothing.

The hime continued staring at him rapturously. "A description, please?" Kagome finally interjected, when it seemed no information was forthcoming.

Startled, Machiko turned back to her. "Oh! Yes…" she said. "Um… he had long dark brown hair… and green eyes… he wore armor and had a brown tail and cute little pointed ears and cute little fangs…" She trailed off, appearing to think for a moment, although Kagome suspected that all her appearances of thought were merely for show.

"Oh! And he had a scar, running from here –" she pointed to her left shoulder " – down to here." She ran the finger to her right hip. Kagome was no good at whistling, but she would have whistled low if she could. That was certainly an impressive scar. She scribbled that in her notebook.

"Anything else?" she inquired. The hime shook her head.

"No. He seemed to be a little taller than you, though," she offered. "I believe that is all."

Kagome nodded, dutifully copied the information, closed the notebook, and looked up to see Machiko again staring at Sesshoumaru. Kagome cleared her throat.

"Machiko-sama," she said gently as the girl redirected her attention, "I will find the father of your baby, and I will bring to you the medicine needed. I swear that both you and your child will live. There is no need to fear."

A huge grin broke across the girl's face. "Thank you, miko-sama!" she exclaimed fervently. She bowed as best she could, her maid following suit.

Kagome smiled and bowed back. "I would be honored if you would stay the night here," she said suddenly. "The night is cold, and you shouldn't be traveling in your condition."

The maid responded. "Thank you, miko-sama. That is most kind."

"I will go see if I can find some extra bedrolls for you," Kagome informed them, and rose to her feet, exiting the hut.

A quick toss-up of the headman's house later, Kagome returned carrying extra bedding for her guests and found Sesshoumaru sitting in the snow, propped up against the side of the hut.

"What are you doing out here?" Kagome demanded, nearly dropping the bedrolls in consternation.

"Sleeping," Sesshoumaru responded. The smells of the pregnant female and her overly-nervous servant were nearly stifling inside the hut, and even though it was cold outside he had decided that he could endure it more easily than the stench that reminded him of things best left buried.

"Why?" she demanded. "There's plenty of room inside!"

For once, Sesshoumaru didn't feel like arguing with her, so he said nothing.

After a brief moment of silence, he heard her sigh loudly. "Have it your way," the miko huffed, and flounced back inside. He let her go. It was more welcoming out in the cold, anyway.

* * *

In the middle of the night, Sesshoumaru was rudely awoken by an icy hand snaking its way beneath his haori and onto his bare chest. With a valiant effort, he wisely refrained from squealing like a little girl and slapping it away.

With a tenuous hold on his dignity in place, he slowly opened his eyes to find Machiko squirming against him, giving him a deviously coy smile and looking for the entire world like a novice whore, confident in her ability to attract a client. Sesshoumaru had never seen anything so wiltingly unsexy in his life. He watched as she casually flicked an icy finger over his nipple. "Do you like that, my lord?" she breathed, possibly in what she thought was a seductive manner.

Kill her! his still-groggy mind screamed, immediately followed by, No! Mustn't kill! Wretched honor! Run away!

Within the blink of an eye he was three meters away, watching the heavily pregnant girl gradually topple over into the snow. The sight gave him a brief stab of something that, after a moment, he identified as guilt. Now on her back, she looked like a turtle that had been upended, which was a pathetic sight indeed, sure to soften even the stoniest of hearts.

In the back of his mind, long-forgotten memories suddenly stirred gently and painfully, like the soft, seductive tremors before an earthquake. Another face melted into Machiko's, with large, pleading eyes and gentle hands. In his chest, his heart hitched painfully, and then the memory was gone, and the hime was all that remained. Sesshoumaru allowed himself to give into momentary cruelty, banishing the specter of the past.

He watched with vague interest to see if she would be able to right herself.

After several moments of struggle, she managed to prop herself up against the wall and shoot him a glare filled with daggers. Given her current condition, the glare was analogous to having his foot worried by a kitten.

"Pardon me, my lord," she said icily. "I did not mean to offend you."

Keeping his face carefully neutral, Sesshoumaru stared at her until she grew uncomfortable and averted her eyes. "What did you think you were doing?" he finally asked.

The hime threw her hands up in a helpless gesture. "I do not know, my lord," she said. "All I can say is that I have not been myself lately. Ever since… well…" She shifted, clearly embarrassed, and let a fluttering hand settle on her swollen belly. "I am not myself," she repeated. She no longer looked frivolous and flighty. Instead, there was an expression of desperation and fear on her features, as though she was looking down a long black tunnel with no light at the end.

The girl was clearly insane. Sesshoumaru decided that should he ever decide to procure children that he would go for another extended constitutional to avoid the fallout from the pregnancy.

"Leave," he told her.

To his deep chagrin, she just giggled. He stared.

"What?" he finally asked, when she wouldn't stop.

She heaved a few deep breaths, trying to get her desperate little laughs under control. "I am sorry!" she said. "It is just… I do not even know your name! I cannot believe I did that."

Sesshoumaru couldn't resist. "You did not know his name either," he pointed out.

Abruptly, the hime stopped her tittering and looked away from him. "I apologize, my lord," she said finally. "I thought you would understand." She put a hand out on the wall and began to climb ponderously to her feet.

Don't get any further into this than necessary, his brain told him warningly, but curiosity was hitting him over the head, demanding an explanation. "Why?" he inquired.

Momentarily distracted from the task of standing up, Machiko looked at him in surprise. "Your miko, of course," she said.

"What about her?"

Machiko bit her lip. "I see," she said. "Forgive me, I had assumed… Since you two were traveling together…" She shot him an apologetic look. "I had surmised that you were more than just friends," she finally told him. She was on her feet now, and for some reason she looked sad and ethereal in the falling snow.

"We are not friends," Sesshoumaru informed her.

Face grave, Machiko didn't even laugh this time. "I see," she said again. "I will leave you now, my lord. Good night to you."

The youkai lord watched as she tottered around the corner and tiptoed into the hut. When she was well out of sight he allowed himself a rare gesture and shook his head slightly before resuming his position on the ground.

He did not sleep for the rest of the night, for fear that the past would reassert itself.

Instead, he let his mind unfocus, and stared at the falling snow.

* * *

Machiko and her maid left early the next morning, bowing and thanking Kagome. As they climbed with difficulty into their carriage, Myouga, sitting on Kagome's shoulder, gave a sigh.

"Looks like we'll be heading for the mountains," he said with a hint of resignation in his voice.

Glancing at him in surprise, Kagome raised her eyebrows. "Don't you like the mountains?" she asked, turning to go inside and pack her things.

Myouga shook his head. "Not at this time of year," he told her. "It will be colder up there."

Kagome had not thought of that. "I suppose," she replied. It was probably time to layer up again, and suddenly the prospect of walking was not particularly enjoyable. She wished there was some way to take a portable fire with her, but that was probably not meant to be, and again the fairytale had screwed up the timeline. It would probably take another month before she was able to go look for Miroku and Sango, or their children, and she found the idea depressing.

"Perhaps it will not take very long," she suggested, although she herself did not believe that the appointed journey would take any less time than a month.

Apparently Myouga thought so too, as he merely shrugged. "One can always hope," he agreed. "But I will be riding inside your clothes, if you do not mind."

"Don't be a pervert," she scolded, stuffing various detritus into her backpack.

"Kagome-sama! I am offended that you would impugn my honor so!" the flea replied. Kagome just laughed as she looked up to see Sesshoumaru standing in the doorway. The laughter died in her throat.

He took no notice. "Are they gone?" he asked imperiously.

"They left just a few minutes ago," Kagome replied, and Sesshoumaru nodded.

Kagome frowned. The youkai lord looked strangely tired. There weren't any physical indications, such as dark circles under his eyes, but the way he seemed to carry himself this morning suggested that he had not had much sleep. There was a certain slant to his shoulders that implied weariness, which was worrying. She hadn't seen him look anything other than bored since that night – it seemed ages ago now – that they had spoken with each other by the fire in the woods.

"Are you feeling all right?" she asked him, concern overriding the need to get moving.

If he had been a man prone to gestures, she imagined that he would have waved a hand, brushing the question off. "I am fine."

"You just look a little tired," she continued. "Should we wait before leaving?"

Sesshoumaru was slightly startled at her declaration. He hadn't known that she would notice. "I do not wish to speak of it," he said carefully. "And if you are finished dawdling here…?"

"For your information," she huffed, "I am merely trying to make sure that we have everything." God, she thought. He's so impossible sometimes. Why do I even bother?

Sesshoumaru just shrugged and exited.

"What's with him?" Kagome hissed at Myouga.

Myouga executed a similar shrug. "Sometimes milord has trouble sleeping," he told her. "It is nothing to worry about, and he will be fine tomorrow. Though I would avoid getting on his bad side."

"Does he have any other side?" Kagome wondered, shouldering her backpack and stepping outside. She almost ran straight into Sesshoumaru's back.

"I heard that," he informed her, before turning in the direction of the North.

"Well, I'm glad you did," she shot back, hurrying to fall in beside him.

Myouga just sighed and buried under the neck of her haori as the small group began their journey to the mountains, and the sunlight peeked over the edge of the landscape, bathing them in gold.